A Successful Scorecard

The New Jersey SIM Foundation's all-day charity golf event raised more money ever before, including $30,000 to help middle-school students learn personal and business financial skills.

I think the reaction of the kids is best summed up by the following statement by Tairi, JA BizTown mayor for a day: "We do real life things that may really help us in the future and it will help us realize what kind of jobs we can do. It has been a great experience."

I would say that all of this is a terrific "scorecard" and use of the grant money.

Do Yourself a Favor: Get Involved

If you have read any of my articles, you know that I always include a personal story and provide a call to action. This article is no different.

Five years ago, I realized that almost 90 percent of my business contacts were not located in New Jersey, where I live and work. I decided to take action and applied to the NJ SIM chapter. As a result, I have achieved my goal of increasing my number of business contacts in New Jersey. But I also got so much more than I planned.

• I experienced a great sense of satisfaction from helping people in transition.

• I was able to feel a part of the local community through the SIM Foundation.

• And, most importantly, I made some new friends that will be with me long after SIM.

Here is my advice and call to action to every IT leader reading this article: Stop staring at your computer screen, get out from behind that desk, put down that cell phone, and go out and connect with people. Don’t let your job be your entire life. Get out there and see what you have been missing.

SIM is a national organization, and its state chapters have a foundation or outreach program for their local communities. If you want to help others, please think of joining SIM or other volunteer organizations that are making the world a better place.

John Palinkas is a partner at The IT Transformation Institute. He has spent more than three decades in the IT services industry, working with industry leaders like AT&T, AT&T Solutions and British Telecom. He has led numerous multimillion dollar, multiyear outsourcing and service-delivery engagements for dozens of Fortune 500 firms. He has extensive experience and expertise in IT transformation efforts, outsourcing analysis, M&A integrations and service implementations. John serves on the executive committee for NJ SIM Chapter, the leadership team of NJ itSMF LIG, and is a regular contributor to CIO Insight. He can be reached via email at John.Palinkas@TransformingIT.org, and you can follow him on Twitter via @jpalinkas.

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